PORTSMOUTH, Va. (WAVY) — More Americans will be on the go for the Thanksgiving holiday than ever before. AAA is predicting more than 82 million people to travel more than 50 miles.
Seventy-three million people will travel by car this Thanksgiving, representing nearly 90% of all holiday travelers.
AAA projects the busiest days of travel to fall on the Tuesday and Wednesday before the holiday and then the Sunday following Thanksgiving, with 2.1 million Virginians traveling more than 50 miles, not counting the typical local traffic you may see.
“So especially in the evenings around usual rush hour, you potentially have a mix of people that are traveling for the Thanksgiving holiday weekend just mixed in with regular commuter traffic, which will just exacerbate, I’ll say, exacerbate all the regular pain points on the roads,” said Ryan Adcock with AAA Tidewater Region.
AAA expects six million Americans to fly domestically this Thanksgiving, a two-percent increase from 2024.
One Hampton Roads woman is flying to Chicago to visit family for the holiday.
“This is my first time flying but I know the baggage that comes with it. I am ready to buckle down,” Brianna Allen said.
The FAA has said that the workforce has rebounded since the end of the federal government shutdown. Airlines also believe they will be ready to serve the millions of people taking to the skies, but you should prepare for possible slowdowns.
“Make sure that you are getting to the airport early, especially if you’re flying out of Norfolk. You can reserve that parking ahead of time. Make sure that you’re doing that,” Adcock said. “Make sure that you’re doing everything to prevent as much distress that could potentially be caused when you are out there traveling.”
Travel by bus, train and cruise is expected to rise by 8.5% reaching nearly 2.5 million travelers, according to AAA.